How To Invest in Bitcoin in 2018: Easy to Follow Guide for Beginners

The Best Ways to Buy Large Amounts of Bitcoin

Although Bitcoin has gone through some significant price swings, overall, it has been on a steady upward trend.

Plenty of people, from experienced investors to those who have never invested anything, save what they put in their 401(k), have put their money in Bitcoin.

And considering the cryptocurrency’s value shot up 36 percent in April 2018, another influx of interested parties want to know how they can buy Bitcoin in large amounts.

Bitcoin Exchanges and OTC Bitcoin Trading

The most popular way to purchase Bitcoin is undoubtedly through traditional Bitcoin exchanges. It’s the simplest available option, and many of these exchanges are beginner-friendly.

There’s an alternative, though, which is over-the-counter (OTC) Bitcoin trading. This method is best if you want to buy large amounts of Bitcoin. You will often get a better price this way, and you aren’t running the risk of causing a major Bitcoin price movement on an exchange.

The million-dollar question is just how much Bitcoin is a large amount. In general, you’re probably better served with OTC trading when you’re planning to buy at least $250,000 worth of Bitcoin. This isn’t the only reason to do OTC Bitcoin trading, as it can also be faster or more convenient.

Now that you know your options, here are the best Bitcoin exchanges and OTC trading sites for large purchases.

1. Genesis

Genesis is a trustworthy trading group for large OTC Bitcoin purchases. Headquartered in New York, this company is part of the Digital Currency Group, which has a number of high-level backers including MasterCard.

There’s an application process you need to go through, and then Genesis must approve you before you can use its services. The size of the trades that go on here is one reason for that. You’re looking at a minimum of 25 bitcoin per trade. Genesis reports that it has done more than 2,400 trades for over 900,000 bitcoin.

2. Coinbase

When it comes to ease of use, Coinbase is tough to beat. It’s very user-friendly, which has made it a common choice for people who don’t have much or any experience buying Bitcoin.

Although Coinbase previously allowed users to purchase Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies using credit card payments, the only two options now are ACH transfers from a bank account and wire transfers. The daily deposit limit is $50,000.

You can also ask to have that limit increased to $100,000. That option is location-specific, which means it’s only available to users who live in certain areas. Keep in mind that for any deposits over the $50,000 limit, you need to use a wire transfer.

Coinbase uses a fixed rate that stays close to whatever the market price is for Bitcoin at the time. While that means you get a good deal, you unfortunately need to pay a 1-percent fee on every transaction. If you want to avoid that, you’ll need to try Coinbase Exchange, which is covered next.

3. Coinbase Exchange

Coinbase operates this service separately, and Coinbase Exchange is the biggest exchange in the United States. The great thing about it is the fee structure.

In a Coinbase Exchange transaction, there are market makers and market takers. The market makers propose a trade, and the market takers accept it. For example, you could create a buy order for a specific amount of Bitcoin.

That makes you the market maker, and the seller who accepts it the market taker. There’s no fee for market makers, and the market taker fee is just 0.25 percent.

The only drawback with Coinbase Exchange is that there’s a $10,000 limit per day. While it’s available in most of the United States, there are a select few states where it’s not an option.

4. itBit

Just like Genesis, itBit is a company based in New York that you need to apply to if you want to purchase Bitcoin. It has an exchange and OTC trading available.

You can get Bitcoin extremely close to its spot price through itBit, and the company’s OTC market is very active, seeing about 40,000 bitcoin being traded every month.

5. Cumberland Mining

Cumberland Mining has long been a big name in OTC Bitcoin trading. This subsidiary company falls under the DRW Trading envelope, which is a big-name in financial trading.

There’s an application process with Cumberland Mining, and it has a minimum trade size of $100,000.

6. Kraken

Looking for a more European-centric trading option? In that case, you should take a look at Kraken, as this exchange lets you trade with Euros. It also allows Europeans to deposit money using a SEPA transfer. While there are limits to how much you can deposit, these depend on what level of verification you have with Kraken.

Kraken isn’t just for Europeans, as it also has users in many other parts of the world, including the United States. There are typically around 3,000 to 4,000 bitcoin traded per day.

7. Gemini

Gemini has been around since November of 2015, and it was created by the Winklevoss twins, who you may remember from “The Social Network.” They’re also know for becoming Bitcoin billionaires, and then losing that when Bitcoin’s value fell, and then gaining it back (with Bitcoin’s volatility, that process may repeat itself several more times).

This exchange offers trading for individuals and institutional clients, but it doesn’t have a huge volume yet. You may not be able to find the big trades you want on Gemini yet, but it’s something to keep an eye on.

8. Bitstamp

Headquarted in Slovenia, Bitstamp is another good option for European users who wish to make SEPA transfers. SWIFT transfers are another option.

You trade Bitcoin with U.S. dollars on Bitstamp, and since this is one of the very first Bitcoin exchanges, it has a massive userbase. The usual trade volume is 10,000 bitcoin each day.

9. Xapo

If you want to use SWIFT transfers to buy your Bitcoin, then Xapo is another great choice.

It has quite a bit of venture capital companies backing it, and you’re able to buy more than $50,000 in Bitcoin on the exchange.

Conclusion

There’s no one best option for buying large amounts of Bitcoin. Much of it comes down to personal preference and what fits your unique needs. Check out the companies above and you should find out that works for you.